PRESIDENT'S OPEN HOUSE, SEPT 22
Faculty, staff, students and the public are welcome to attend the annual President's Open House, scheduled for 3 to 4:30 p.m. Friday, Sept. 22, in Old Main. President Graham B. Spanier, Jan Jacobs, vice president for administration, and other key staff members will be on hand in 201 and 205 Old Main, and light refreshments will be served. In addition, visitors can view the frescoes and visit the Old Main Tower. Lion Ambassadors will serve as tour guides, and members of the Penn State Magicians Club, of which Spanier is adviser, also will be present. Parents who arrive early for the Alumni Association Parents and Family Day on Saturday, Sept. 23, are also welcome For a preview, visit the president's office virtually by going to http://www.psu.edu/ur/President/ on the Web. 

STRENGTH IS NOT THE KEY TO ALS PATIENTS’ QUALITY OF LIFE
The quality of life for patients with the neurologic disorder, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis — also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease -- appears to depend more their perceptions of the purpose and meaning of life than on their physical condition, says Zachary Simmons, M.D., associate professor of medicine and orthopaedics and rehabilitation at the College of Medicine. He is also director of the ALS Clinic at The Milton S. Hershey Medical Center.. "This is a strong message to all of us that we should not assume that these patients have a poor quality of life simply because they are physically debilitated," he said. Simmons and his colleagues' work on this subject was recently published in the journal Neurology. Their research shows that much of the care for patients with ALS must focus on symptom relief, comfort and psychological support. For more on this story, go to http://www.psu.edu/ur/2000/lifehershey.html 

POPULAR WEB SITE FOR SEXUAL HARASSMENT QUESTIONS
When Penn State Associate Professor Nancy Wyatt developed a web site five years ago to provide up-to-date information about sexual harassment for a communications course, she figured it would be useful for her students. Never in her wildest dreams did Wyatt — an associate professor of speech communication and women's studies who labels herself a 'feminist' -- think her web site would attain the international popularity that it has. As an example, the site recorded 7,998 visits from people in 43 countries between July 16 and August 13. It ranks among the most frequently used sexual harassment sites on the Internet, according to several search engines. "The more people who use it, the happier I am," Wyatt said from her office at Penn State’s Delaware County Campus near Philadelphia. "Many workplaces and schools have no education or training programs about sexual harassment, in spite of the legal requirement to do so." For more on this story, go to http://www.psu.edu/ur/2000/sexualharassment.html. Wyatt's site is at: www.de.psu.edu/harass/intro.htm 

YOUR VOICE, YOUR CHOICE COMMUNITY CALL-IN
The First Amendment will be the topic of a call-in program scheduled at 2p.m. on Tuesday, Sept. 12, on WPSU-FM. WPSU's Cindi Deutschman will host the show, which is the first in a series of programs in Penn State Public Broadcasting's multimedia election year project, "Your Voice, Your Choice."Bob Unger, executive editor of the Centre Daily Times, and Bob Richards, co-director of the Pennsylvania Center for the First Amendment will join Ms. Deutschman in the discussion about our democracy. Listeners may join the discussion by calling 1-800-543-8242 during the one-hour broadcast. Internet users will be able to listen to the program at http://www.wpsu.psu.edu. 

BUILDERS’ WORKSHOP SERIES OFFERED BY PENN COLLEGE
"Cure for the Common Callback," a nationally popular seminar addressing building-science and quality-control issues, will be the first in a series of Builders’ Workshop programs offered around the state. They are sponsored by the Pennsylvania Housing Resource Center at Pennsylvania College of Technology, in partnership with the Pennsylvania Housing Research Center at Penn State. This year’s workshops will focus on the needs of new-construction builders and builders in remodeling or residential construction, says PHRC Director Bill Vandermeer. In October, the PHRC has scheduled two sessions of "Cure for the Common Callback," will be offered in October For more information, contact the PHRC at Penn College by phone (570) 327-4768; fax, (570) 320-5239; or e-mail . 

WEB ALERT: PATERNO PRESS CONFERENCE LIVE ON TUESDAYS
Coach Joe Paterno will hold a regularly-scheduled press conference on Tuesdays, including today, Sept. 12, at 12:30 p.m. in the Founders' Room of the Bryce Jordan Center. The conference will be televised live on the Internet at http://www.GoPSUsports.com A written transcript of the Paterno press conference will be available on the Penn State Web site as soon as possible following the event. 

CUT LOOSE WITH FOOTLOOSE!
Kicking off the new season, the Center for the Performing Arts opens with an explosion of song and dance in the hit Broadway musical Footloose at 7:30 p.m., Tuesday, Sept. 19, in Eisenhower Auditorium. The movie Footloose captured the heart of America with the music of a solid-gold soundtrack, "Let's Hear It For the Boy," "Holding Out for a Hero," "Almost Paradise," and the title song "Footloose" went from gold to platinum to multi-platinum in record time. Adapted for Broadway from the 1984 hit movie that starred Kevin Bacon, there are nine new songs written expressly for the stage version that joins hits from the movie. For tickets or more information, contact the Arts Ticket Center, open 8 a.m. through 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, at (814) 863-0255. Outside the local calling area, phone (800) 278-7849. Most major credit cards are accepted. For more on the Center for Performing Arts, go to http://www.cpa.psu.edu/ 

DISPATCH FROM SYDNEY: WORK BEGIN AT OLYMPIC VILLAGE
Students in Sydney2000 have completed the first module in their academic program, a course at the University of New South Wales on Australian history and culture, says program adviser John Keller. They are now doing three-week practicums at the Olympic Village food services. Assignments for the 64 undergraduates vary widely, ranging from administrative services to front of the house operations like food distribution. The work requires many of those on the morning shift to get up as early as 4 a.m. in order to make the 90-minute trip to the Olympic site. The students’ customers in the Olympic Village include athletes, coaches, officials, and volunteers. Approximately half of the Olympic athletes are already in residence at the village, with the remainder expected to arrive this week. Photos from the program are posted at http://www.international.psu.edu/ieps/sydney2000_photogallery.htm 

PERFORMANCE-ENHANCING DRUG EXPERT SPEAKS OUT
Dr. Charles Yesalis, Penn State professor of health policy administration and exercise and sport science, was recently interviewed by NBC Nightly News reporter Roger O'Neil, about the use of performance-enhancing drugs by competitive athletes, particularly Olympians. The stories are tentatively scheduled to air Sept.18 on NBC Nightly News coverage of the 2000 Summer Olympics. A commentary of his on the subject also appeared in yesterday’s New York Times. Dr.Yesalis, editor of the second edition of "Anabolic Steroids in Sport and Exercise," Human Kinetics Publishers 2000, is also quoted in the Sept. 11 issue of Time magazine and has been extensively interviewed by national and international media recently due to the spotlight on the Summer Olympics.